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Bill would authorize local municipalities to pursue an all‑charter model; sponsor cites New Orleans outcomes
Summary
Representative Place presented a bill to create a pathway for municipalities to adopt an all‑charter school model, citing post‑Katrina New Orleans data; witnesses debated whether New Orleans is an appropriate comparison.
Representative Place returned to the committee to present House Bill 5337, a bill the sponsor said would set a path for local municipalities to pursue an all‑charter school model if they choose.
Place said the proposal draws on reforms implemented in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and cited studies showing gains in graduation rates, test scores and college outcomes in the New Orleans system following the shift to an almost entirely charter model. He argued the option should be available locally for municipalities that want it.
Several committee members pushed back on using New Orleans as a model. Representative Kislak said New Orleans has recently moved in other directions and that the data are “decidedly mixed.” Kislak and others warned that political decisions can drive outcomes and that changes elsewhere are not a guaranteed template for Providence or other Rhode Island districts.
Representative Place said he would make the specific studies he referenced available and welcomed further discussion. The National Education Association of Rhode Island (NEARI) and the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals later testified in opposition, citing concerns that an all‑charter approach could undermine public schools and noting the bill’s vague language about “non‑traditional approaches.” NEARI urged the committee to hold the bill for further study.
The committee did not vote today on the bill; it was included in the items the committee voted to hold for further study earlier in the meeting.
